Sony Cyber-shot RX100 III Digital Camera Review

It's small, it's powerful, it's a new compact powerhouse.

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Sony's line of RX100 point-and-shoots have long been top dog in the camera world, largely considered simply the best point-and-shoots that money can buy. The original RX100 hit the scene two years ago with a 1-inch sensor, a sharp, fast zoom lens, and an excellent mix of creative modes and manual control. The RX100 II dropped last year, adding a hotshoe and an articulating screen to the mix while upping the price slightly. Though the RX100 II was also easily one of the best point-and-shoots around, cameras like the Ricoh GR threatened Sony's dominance.

Which brings us to the 2014 edition of the RX100 line, the Sony Cyber-shot RX100 III (MSRP $799.99). Though the hot shoe is long gone, this year's model has one major trump card: a large pop-up electronic viewfinder. The RX100 III also has an updated sensor, Sony's new Bionz X processor, a remarkable 50Mbps 1080/60p video mode, and a slightly tweaked lens.

It's an impressive list, to be sure. But many cameras have seemed just as promising on paper, only to turn out to be less than the sum of their parts. So what happens when rubber hits the road and you actually take the RX100 III out on the town? Magic. Magic happens.

Design & Handling

A new way to see the world.

On the surface, the RX100 III appears to be only a minor departure from the original RX100 and RX100 II. The RX100s all look about the same, with nearly identical control schemes and bodies that easily slip into your pocket. Compared to last year the only notable difference appears to be the lack of a hot shoe.

Crammed into a body not much larger than a deck of cards, the RX100 III is a lot more camera than it appears at first blush. Though it has the same size and shape as point and shoots with less under the hood, the RX100 III has a 1-inch sensor, and a heck of a processor to back it up. On front you'll also find the new lens, with an impressive maximum aperture range of f/1.8-2.8. That's improved from the f/1.8-4.9 lens on last year's model. The RX100 III doesn't have quite the same zoom range (24-70mm equivalent compared to the RX100 II's 28-100mm), but you get much nicer shots when zooming in because the aperture opens up so much wider. This gives you shallower depth of field, better bokeh, and better low light shooting.

The RX100 III's aperture starts at f/1.8, which is great, but what's better is that it only closes to f/2.8 when you zoom in. View Larger

Also new this year is the addition of a pop-up electronic viewfinder. Though there's still a 1.22m-dot articulating LCD, the pop-up viewfinder gives you far more options and makes it easier than ever to shoot on bright, sunny days. It's also nearly the biggest EVF we've seen on a point-and-shoot yet, with a 0.39-inch panel that is only slightly smaller than the 0.5-inch EVF found on the company's interchangeable lens A6000. It's bright, has no noticebale refresh issues, and our only complaint is the lack of an eyecup. That's a necessity since it slots into the body itself, but it does allow for some light leakage if you're shooting on bright days.

Of course, one of the hallmark control elements of the RX100 series is the control ring around the front lens.Tweet It

The controls and menus are virtually identical to last year's model, and if you've shot with any point-and-shoots in the last few years it shouldn't be hard for you to find your way around. The buttons are clearly labeled and easy to find, and the only complaint we have is that the screen still doesn't use a touch interface—super minor stuff, really. The movie record button that's nestled in the dinky grip is a little tough to press, but that also means it's out of the way so you shouldn't accidentally hit it, either.

Of course, one of the hallmark control elements of the RX100 series is the control ring around the front lens. It's as pleasing to use as ever, with nice, toothy detents and a satisfying response. Able to be used as a control for several different things depending on setting, it's a great way to get just the right shot lined up if you're aiming for more hands-on picture-taking. If you're more used to more traditional styles of snapping pics, there's a mode dial at the top with two auto modes alongside PSAM shooting options.

Features

A clowncar of premium creative and manual camera features

While killer hardware is always a plus for any camera, the RX100 series succeeds because it also has a robust feature set. With creative modes for everybody and manual controls for enthusiasts and pros in need of a second camera, the RX100 III continues this trend. Add to all that the improved video mode, and this is yet another impressive point-and-shoot.

Sony updated this camera just enough to arm it for any situation while keeping what made the RX100 II so great.Tweet It

First up is the new Bionz X processor. Though the last Bionz was no slouch, the RX100 III's improved processor grants a faster drive mode, and the ability to shoot the high-bitrate XAVC-S video. For those of you keeping score at home, that means 120fps HD video at 720p, and 50Mbps 60fps video in 1080p. That's a huge upgrade to point-and-shoot cinematography, with video quality that easily matches most sub-$1,000 DSLRs.

For enthusiast still photographers the RX100 III also shoots in both JPEG and RAW, with a robust burst mode no matter which type of shooting you prefer. If you decide to get the most out of your shots after the fact, you can tinker with the RX100 III's malleable RAW files in Photoshop or Lightroom. For a point and shoot, this is a great option to have, as they often don't give you this level of flexibility.

For all you social media sharers out there, the RX100 III maintains the WiFi and NFC connectivity of previous models. Once you grab the iOS or Android app you can share shots with your phone. The pairing process over shared WiFi a little hit-or-miss, but transfer speeds are lightning quick and directly connecting via WiFi is quite good. The app also allows for remote viewfinding and control, letting you shoot with the camera from across the room with your phone. This feature is a little hidden in the menu, but it's valuable when you need it.

We touched on the articulating screen before, but it bears repeating that it can now flip to a greater range of positions. Its range of motion even allows it to face all the way toward your subject, allowing for self-shots and other hard-to-reach snaps. Additionally, the 1.22-million-dot LCD is bright and well-built. It does have some glare problems, but indoors it shines through just about anything. There's of course always the viewfinder, but if I'm being honest I didn't use it as much as I thought I would. It's small and has a low pixel density, so the rear screen is still the best, most convenient option most of the time. In bright conditions where you simply can't see the rear screen, though, the EVF is a lifesaver.

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Performance

Knock-your-socks-off good performance in nearly any condition

Considering Sony took an already-great camera and imbued it with a better lens and processor, it's no surprise that this thing runs circles around other compact point and shoots. The only point-and-shoots we've tested with better performance overall are Sony's own RX10—basically an RX100 with a much bigger, nicer lens—and Panasonic's excellent new 4K-shooting FZ1000. Both of those are bridge cameras, though, and hardly fit in your pocket.

Even with maximum noise reduction, the RX100 III's detail loss in high ISO shots is minimal at worst.

In our battery of lab tests we were pleasantly surprised by how well the RX100 III held up. It's not that much better than the RX100 II, but the upgrades aren't entirely trivial. The new lens is sharper than previous iterations, with better low light sensitivity thanks to the brighter, faster lens. The Bionz X processor may also be the best at noise reduction we've seen to date, and the out-of-camera JPEGs are stellar. Fine detail is taken down a peg, but to far less of a degree than we see with most cameras. If you have to shoot at ISO 1600 and above, feel free to rely on the strongest noise reduction setting.

Noise reduction may be noticeable in pixel-peeping, but it's kept to a relative minimum overall.

In our video tests the RX100 III also came up better than last year, thanks to the new XAVC-S video mode that allows for high bitrate 1080/60p shooting. There's also a 720/120p slow motion mode, but the 1080/60p mode will net you the sharpest video. Either one is just fine for low light shooting, and we found that just leaving the automatic ISO setting on will enable you to shoot video in just about every lighting situation you'll find yourself in—including dimly-lit birthday parties and dinners.

The only sore spot here is something shared by most point and shoot cameras: automatic white balance. For whatever reason, the automatic white balance setting just doesn't react as quickly as we'd hoped, and that can leave your shots with an ugly color cast if you move from one lighting condition to another quickly. As always, RAW shooters need not worry about it. If you're outside in daylight conditions, however, the RX100 III is spot on.

The RX100 III is also just plain fast when it comes to shooting continuous shots. The fastest burst setting allows for 10 frames per second burst shooting for up to 13 RAW frames at a time. That's not the fastest we've seen, but it's more than enough for capturing quick bursts of action. The processor also clears the buffer quickly, letting you chain bursts together reasonably quickly. Though in terms of pure performance you can do better than the RX100 III for the money, there's simply not a point-and-shoot that's this good that you can fit into your pocket.

Conclusion

Sony's point-and-shoot king reigns on.

As we saw with both the RX100 and RX100 II, there's an enormous amount of hype about the RX100 III. Yes, RX100s are a bit of a known quantity, but with a new lens, processor, and pop-up EVF the RX100 III is better than ever. The fact that it's also not appreciably more expensive than the RX100 II is simply a bonus at this point. This is the best compact point-and-shoot on the market and it's really not close.

Of course, it's also one of the most expensive compact point-and-shoots, with an MSRP right around $800. Though you'll pay a premium for this camera, it's simple to use, has tons of control, benefits from a fantastic sensor, is great in low light, takes awesome video... there's really so little to complain about here. There's a lot of hardware in that tiny package, and all of it is stellar.

Many of the improvements to the camera center around its lens and new processor.

If you're in the market for a great point-and-shoot then you've no doubt heard a great deal of bluster about getting "DSLR-quality" shots from a fixed-lens camera. Cameras like the Sony RX10 and Panasonic FZ1000 certainly do that, and they look the part also. They're big, chunky, have giant lenses, and take great photos. Perhaps the most remarkable thing about the RX100 III is how little it gives up compared to those cameras. After all, it basically has the same sensor and processor as the RX10 with a 3x zoom lens that covers a useful zoom range (24-70mm) and has a super-wide aperture range of f/1.8-2.8—and you still get a (smaller) EVF.

There's a lot of hype surrounding this camera on the web, and it's completely warranted.Tweet It

As good as the RX100 III is, you shouldn't entirely ignore the other high-end compact options. Though the RX100 III is truly something special, you'll be able to find older RX100s and RX100 IIs online at a steep discount with few tradeoffs. If a bigger sensor is more your style, the venerable Panasonic Lumix GM1 is actually smaller than the RX100 III, and offers competitive image quality and an interchangeable lens mount. There's also the Ricoh GR, which is a real pro's camera, costs less money, and features an awesome APS-C sensor that is way bigger than the RX100 III's.

Either way, though, all the caveats in the world can't undo one simple fact: the RX100 III is, without question, the best camera you can fit in your pocket.

Our editors review and recommend products to help you buy the stuff you need. If you make a purchase by clicking one of our links, we may earn a small share of the revenue. Our picks and opinions are independent from any business incentives.

Where To Buy

Sony Cyber-Shot RX100 III

Our editors review and recommend products to help you buy the stuff you need. If you make a purchase by clicking one of our links, we may earn a small share of the revenue. Our picks and opinions are independent from any business incentives.

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Where To Buy

Sony Cyber-Shot RX100 III

Our editors review and recommend products to help you buy the stuff you need. If you make a purchase by clicking one of our links, we may earn a small share of the revenue. Our picks and opinions are independent from any business incentives.

Our editors review and recommend products to help you buy the stuff you need. If you make a purchase by clicking one of our links, we may earn a small share of the revenue. Our picks and opinions are independent from any business incentives.